A tournament-opening 3-2 victory over the United States secured, members of Russia’s team here for the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge busied themselves on their cell phones in the bowels of the WFCU Centre Friday afternoon, texting the good news to friends and family.

They may come from the other side of the planet, but deep down, they’re not much different than our own teenagers – smiling easily, having fun, dealing with whatever life places before them.

In the case of these Russian players, they share a common bond with all of their hockey-loving notion.

Sorrow at the loss of an entire hockey club, when the plane carrying the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl Kontinental Hockey League team crashed Sept. 7, killing the entire roster.

“It was a huge tragedy, not only in the city, but for the whole of the country,” Russian coach Sergei Suryakov explained through interpreter Pavel Shtefan.

For four players on the Russian roster - defencemen Rushan Rafikov, Nikita Cherepanov, and Vladislav Gavrikov and forward Yevgeni Zakurin – the devastation hit home even more forcefully.

All play for Lokomotiv Yaroslavl’s club in the MHL, the junior division of the KHL.

They didn’t just feel the pain, they knew those who suffered.

These were their mentors, their friends, and in some cases, their teammates.

“I played with two players who died in the plane crash,” Russian goaltender Nikita Serebryakov said.

One of those he knew well was left-winger Alexander Galimov, who survived the crash, only to die from injuries in hospital.

“I was hoping that Galimov would survive, but unfortunately he didn’t,” Serebryakov said.

“I was really upset, like everyone else in Russia.”

Months later, Cherepanov struggles to accept that the tragedy actually took place.

“For a couple of weeks, I still couldn’t believe it was a reality,” Cherepanov said. “I still sometimes can’t believe that it happened.

“I played with a couple of the players, and had a couple of friends on the team.”

They all did.

The hockey community is a close-knit one, no matter the nation.

Paths cross. Bonds are formed, some that last a lifetime.

Yaroslavl is no different than any Canadian centre you might want to name.

Hockey is its lifeblood, what keeps the place percolating through the harsh winter months.

“The city is a very big hockey town,” Cherepanov said. “A lot of people in the city are involved with the hockey team.”

For Gavrikov, the tragedy is especially personal. Yaroslavl isn’t merely his team.

It’s his home.

“I not only play for the club, I was born in Yaroslavl,” Gavrikov said.

Suyarkov also played for the club from 1992-95.

“I knew many of the guys,” said Suyarkov, who intends to help his old team, currently on sabbatical from the KHL, get back on track.

“I have been invited to coach there, to help rebuild the future of the club.”

It’s the chance to ensure that those who were lost are never forgotten that drives the young Yaroslavl players.

“For sure, to build the hockey back, to bring the KHL team back,” Cherepanov lists as his hockey motivation. “From now on, it is imperative for me to be in the team and develop and get the hockey back.”

Others are driven toward the same goal.

“Definitely for me, I will stay in the city and get the KHL team back to the same level it was before the tragedy,” Gavrikov said.

Heartbroken by loss, these young men who hold the future of Yaroslavl hockey in their hands are empowered by the opportunity to ensure it comes to fruition.

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